Nemo's Play Day
by Nate Grey
Summary: Nunnally's smile isn't easy to maintain. Good thing she has C.C. to help out. No, really.


Notes: This came to me while I was washing dishes. Also, I had "Fields of Hope" from Gundam Seed Destiny blasting in my ears at the time. Don't ask.

Warning: This may seem wildly out of character at a certain point. My defense is that there are plenty of people who can't handle being blind OR crippled. To face both without supportive parents isn't a fate I'd wish on my worst enemy.

Summary: Nunnally's smile isn't easy to maintain. Good thing she has C.C. to help out. No, really.

**Nemo's Play Day**

**A Code Geass One-shot by**

**Nate Grey (xman0123-at-aol-dot-com)**

* * *

C.C. woke up as she usually did that morning, around 11:32 AM, in Lelouch's bed. It was tricky, claiming the bed at the exact moment he left for school, and sleeping soundly for just over four hours straight, but she managed it nicely.

This morning, however, was different. As usual, the first thing she saw was Cheese-kun's fuzzy, smiling face. The only difference was that there was a note pinned to his chest. It wasn't from Lelouch, then: he knew her well enough to leave all his notes taped to pizza boxes.

Curious, C.C. removed the note and quickly read it. It turned out to be in Sayoko's handwriting, but the note itself was from Nunnally. "Dear C.C., Please come and pick me up from school right after lunchtime. I'll explain everything later. Love, Nunnally. P.S. I left a pizza for you on the kitchen table."

C.C. was not quite sure what to make of the note. She had no idea why Nunnally would plan to leave school early, or why she wouldn't just have Sayoko or someone from the Student Council bring her home. It was all very mysterious, but she wasn't about to question it for very long with a pizza waiting on her.

* * *

Nunnally liked Rivalz, she really did. But she just did not think he was very funny, at least, not when he was trying to be. The decision to eat lunch with him, then, was questionable at best. He always felt like it was his duty to entertain her, and while she appreciated the effort, rarely was she ever amused by anything he thought she'd find amusing. Still, he was a nice boy, and the least likely to ask probing questions, so he was perfect for her purposes.

Rivalz was just asking why the Britannian crossed the road when a hand came to rest on Nunnally's. It only took her an instant to recognize the owner, as anyone else would speak before they touched her, too concerned about startling her.

"C.C., you came!" Nunnally said excitedly, turning to her.

C.C. almost pointed out that that had been Nunnally's request, then noticed Rivalz staring and decided against it. "Yes," she said simply. "Shall we go now?"

"Uh, Nunnally, you know her?" Rivalz asked at once. "And you're leaving with her?"

"Oh, yes," Nunnally replied, but said nothing more.

Rivalz began to visibly sweat. "Hey, come on, cut me a break! What am I supposed to say when Lelouch asks where you are?"

"Tell him I'm with C.C., of course."

"Why do I get the feeling that won't be nearly enough for him?"

Nunnally beamed at him. "Don't worry, Rivalz. I just need a little break, that's all."

"What if I go with you?" Rivalz asked desperately. "That way you'll be there to protect me from your brother!"

C.C. gave him a flat stare. "This," she said imperiously, "is Girl Stuff."

Rivalz paled and instantly backed off. "Ah. Have fun, then."

Nunnally giggled as C.C. steered her away. "I think you almost made him wet his pants!"

"It wouldn't have been the first time," C.C. noted absently. "Where are we going?"

"There's a bird-watching spot near here that's deserted around this time of day. I want to go there."

"You want to see birds?" C.C. asked mildly.

"Not really, no."

* * *

It was all very strange, and yet very impressive, C.C. decided later.

The bird-watching spot turned out to be a fenced-in grassy field, with a small sign asking that visitors refrain from littering.

Nunnally brought her wheelchair to a stop just outside of the field, and asked C.C. to carry her the rest of the way.

As she still hadn't explained what they were doing there, C.C. asked why. Nunnally's reply was that she didn't want to crush any of the flowers. C.C. had eventually done as she was asked, depositing Nunnally in the middle of the field before retracing her steps.

For nearly half an hour, Nunnally merely sat there, running her hands carefully along the tops of the flowers.

At that point, C.C. began imagining how many pizzas Nunnally would have to buy her later to keep quiet about this. Lelouch would be furious about the blackmail, but it would also be the perfect opportunity to point out that if he spent more time with his sister, no one would be able to take advantage of her, or at least not without him knowing.

Her thoughts were interrupted violently by a heart-rending, frustrated scream. C.C.'s head snapped up, and the sight that greeted her eyes was a totally unexpected one.

Nunnally, who was always smiling, always so gentle, always composed, was clawing at the ground with wild abandon, cruelly ripping flowers from the grass and tossing them in all directions, extinguishing the tiny lives with little or no thought. Her face was twisted into a mask of rage, hatred, and fear, and C.C. was immediately glad that Nunnally never bothered to open her eyes anymore. She knew in that moment that looking into Nunnally's eyes then would've been no different from staring down a demon.

This went on for almost ten minutes, until Nunnally, thoroughly exhausted, collapsed facedown in the grass, her body shuddering uncontrollably.

C.C. stayed right where she was, though, until Nunnally finally called her. She'd rolled over onto her back by the time C.C. reached her, and all that remained of the enormous tantrum were grass stains on her legs, and a few tear tracks on her face.

"I think," Nunnally said quietly as C.C. picked her up, "that we should go home now."

As she carried Nunnally back to her wheelchair, C.C. thought about asking what she'd just witnessed, but decided it wasn't the right time. She changed her mind, however, when Nunnally opened her backpack, revealing a change of clothes, and a somewhat worn handkerchief with her mother's initials embroidered in golden letters.

"You've done this before."

Nunnally looked up slightly, but said nothing until she'd wiped her face. "Once a month, since my mother was killed."

"Lelouch doesn't know."

"He can't know. It would destroy him, if he knew how unhappy I feel sometimes. He lives to make me smile, C.C. I can't take that away from him. I can't lose him, too."

"Why did you share this with me?" C.C. finally asked. "Doesn't Sayoko usually come with you?"

"Yes. But Lelouch trusts you, and so do I." Nunnally bit her lip. "And, she hates seeing me... this way. I didn't think it would bother you as much."

In truth, C.C. wasn't bothered, just surprised. "What is it that you fear the most?"

Nunnally thought for a few moments. "That either Lelouch or I will die and leave the other alone to face the world."

"I will be here," C.C. pointed out.

"I think either of us would like that," Nunnally said, but she didn't smile as C.C. expected her to.

"Then that is our contract," C.C. replied, running her hand lightly through Nunnally's hair.

* * *

For the first time in a long time, Nunnally didn't feel like waiting up for Lelouch. In fact, she ate early, had an extra helping at dinner, and was in bed by 7 PM. She couldn't sleep, however, so C.C. decided to sit with her for a while. Truthfully, she was a bit concerned about Nunnally's mental state after what she'd seen earlier. At this point, though, poking through the girl's memories would hurt more than it would help.

"Do you think Lelouch is worried about me right now?" Nunnally asked suddenly.

"That would depend on how much he trusts me," C.C. answered. "If he were really worried, though, he'd have been home by now."

"You're right," Nunnally agreed. "He doesn't trust just anyone with my safety."

C.C. wisely decided not to mention she was pretty good with firearms.

Less than a minute later, there was a knock on the door, and Lelouch poked his head in, although he had his eyes covered. "Is the Girl Stuff over yet?"

C.C.'s gaze immediately went to Nunnally, and she could almost hear the click as the sad, world-weary Nunnally's face melted away, revealing a warm (but in C.C.'s own opinion, false) smile. "Yes, silly!" she giggled.

Lelouch crossed the room and stood beside C.C., who favored him with a brief, annoying smirk. "I guess it's too much to hope that you two went to a casino and cleaned out some old, rich guy?"

"Whatever we did, it was good for her," C.C. stated firmly. "Now say goodnight so she can get some sleep."

Lelouch looked as if he were about to argue, but Nunnally interrupted him. "I am feeling a little tired tonight, Lelouch."

He shot C.C. a warning look. "Probably from whatever she dragged you into-"

"No. It was my idea. I wanted to go bird-watching."

Lelouch frowned in confusion. "Nunnally, you... you're tired from bird-watching?" He'd barely stopped himself in time from pointing out that she couldn't see.

"They never showed up, and we looked everywhere."

It was so awkward that he just had to ask. But before he did, Lelouch sat down on the side of the bed and gently cupped her face with his hand. "Nunnally, are you... lying to me?"

"No, of course not. I really did want to go bird-watching. But they weren't there, so we did something else, and then we came home. Honest." She paused before adding, "I always want to go bird-watching. They're some of what I miss seeing the most. Those and flowers and you."

Lelouch stared at her. "So, even if the birds HAD been there..."

"I would've described them to her, of course," C.C. chimed in.

He just looked at her in a way meant to convey how silly that sounded.

"In GREAT detail."

Lelouch finally shook his head. "So the person who wants to see the birds can only hear them, and the person who can see them doesn't care one way or the other? I think I need to go bed now, too. I obviously hit my head at some point today."

"You can sleep here," Nunnally suggested, latching onto him. "That way C.C. can have your bed tonight."

"But I don't WANT C.C. to have my bed tonight," Lelouch complained, scowling at them both.

"Well, I don't care. I'm your little sister, I want you here with me, and there's no point in your bed not having someone in it."

"There's every point! It'll last longer, and-"

The door clicked shut, and neither one had to look to know that C.C. was on the other side of it.

"I don't even have anything to sleep in with me," Lelouch grumbled, but he obediently slipped under the blanket and drew Nunnally close to him.

"You should go bird-watching with C.C. next time," Nunnally suggested.

"Why? I don't want to go bird-watching, especially not with her talking about birds that I can see for myself."

"Oh, but it's a terrible bird-watching spot. You probably won't see a single one."

Lelouch stared at her with growing suspicion. "You're trying to make me take C.C. on a date, aren't you?"

"It's free," Nunnally pointed out weakly.

"Until she makes me stop for pizza on the way home."

"So feed her before you leave."

"That just means I'd have to pay for food going and coming."

"Lelouch, she's not a bad person. She's good for you. And she's nice to me, in her own way."

"Of course she's not a bad person. She's a weird person, and I'm not crazy about spending that much time alone with her talking about birds that, again, I can-"

Nunnally let out a rather fake yawn. "You really need to marry C.C. someday, Lelouch. She's the only other person that can put up with all of your complaining. Let's sleep now."

Lelouch nearly refused, but Nunnally put her head on his chest, so he was almost obligated to quiet down, kiss both of her eyelids tenderly, and then turn out the light.

**The End.**

* * *

Endnotes:

It just occurred to me: Nunnally was probably young enough when she lost her sight that she'd have trouble writing. At least, I think so. Don't know any blind people personally.

If you don't know who Nemo is or what it has to do with this story, you can find out the same way I did: Wikipedia. They probably explain it way better than I could, anyway.

Okay, this is probably a stupid question, but I have yet to see an explanation anywhere. Lelouch's full name is Lelouch vi Britannia. Where exactly does the 'vi' come from, and does it stand for anything? For that matter, where do the other members of the Imperial Family get their 'middle' names? And would those names change somehow if one of them took the throne? At first I thought they might be some form of Roman numerals derived from their mother's rank. The only problem there is that Marianne was the fifth wife, and vi means 'six' in Roman numerals, so... yeah. Would LOVE some help with this, as I am very much confuzzled.


End file.
